This webpage is intended to present a balanced and factual summary of the 2018 school funding ballot initiatives.

Update: November 16, 2018

The results of the 2018 election are finally in and they mean improved opportunities for students, better pay for our educators and staff, and improved buildings in Jeffco!

During this election cycle, I talked extensively with people in our community about their choices on the ballot. With ballot questions 5A and 5B as local measures and Amendment 73 at the state level, voters in Jeffco had important and meaningful options to consider.

5A is a $33 million mill levy override and has passed by a strong 55% to 45% margin. 5A resources will allow Jeffco to be more competitive with surrounding districts in our compensation levels and services we offer our students.

5B is a $567 million bond package that turned out to be the ballot question “that could!” On election night, 5B was down around 9,000 votes. However, over the past week as more votes were counted, the “yes” votes on 5B just kept coming in. Today, we are confident the measure will pass. 5B will allow for incredibly significant improvements to buildings all across Jeffco, including reinvesting in our established communities, accommodating growth areas, and adding new facilities for learning in our county.

Amendment 73 was not a local measure but was an amendment to the Colorado Constitution that would have brought $1.6 billion in new revenue into PreK-12 education. Requiring 55% to pass, it would have moved Colorado near, though not quite at, the national average when it comes to school funding. Voters in Colorado rejected Amendment 73 by a 46% to 54% margin. This means that the current education funding in Colorado will remain the status quo, and we will need to look to the future for possible solutions to the state’s structural and policy issues related to funding.

Together, 5A and 5B will have a tremendous positive impact on our schools. We are already working to revise our budgets and put in place construction plans so that our students and community start seeing the positive impacts of these two measures as soon as possible.

On behalf of all of us with Jeffco Public Schools, thank you. The passage of ballot questions 5A and 5B serve as firm evidence that Jeffco values its schools and the people working within them. More importantly, it also shows that we love our children enough to make a significant investment in their future. For this, I am grateful.